Somewhere in the back of Sejeong’s head, an alarm went off, sirens blaring. You have to stop. This is wrong. This is… wrong? Stop this. But it feels so right. Stop kissing her. But I don’t want to… This isn’t what you want. STOP!

Sejeong’s hands suddenly pushed you back as she snapped her head backwards. She was out of breath with a noticeable grimace contorting her features.

“D—did I hurt you?” you spoke hesitantly, trying not to let your disappointment show. You took a step towards her. She took a step back.

“I… I don’t know anymore,” Sejeong shook her head, “a part of me wants you, but a part of me wants someone else.” She looked at you desperately, as tears started to pool at the corner of her eyes. “I’m so confused. I hate feeling likes this.” She clutched her chest tightly, “it’s not fair to you that I keep changing my mind like this.”

You stood there stunned at Sejeong’s sudden confession. You felt saddened, but you understood where she was coming from, but her confession didn’t hurt any less. “Maybe we were moving a little too fast,” you forced a smile, “as you said, I think we need to reassess our feelings instead of rushing into things.”

“I’m sorry… I don’t want to hurt you. It’s not fair to string you along if I’m not 100% with my feelings.”

“I understand,” you paused. A sad smile formed slowly, “you still love Chungha right?”

//

Yeonjung didn’t know what to do. She felt overwhelming sadness for the grief-stricken girl in front of her. Chungha was a mess. All she could do was try to reassure the older girl and comfort her, even though it was clear that things were not okay.

“Chungha-unnie…”

Chungha held on to Yeonjung tighter, with her tears freely falling onto Yeonjung’s shirt.

Yeonjung was slowly suffocating under the girl’s tight embrace. Her ribs were slowly constricting against her lungs, making it difficult for her to breathe. All attempts to loosen the vice grip Chungha had on her were futile. For a tiny girl, she’s strong. Yeonjung grunted. Damn, she could probably squeeze my soul out of my body at this rate. Sight, maybe that would be better. Just take me away from this hell hole called life. Yeonjung squirmed under her grip, “you’re. suffocating. me.” Every word came out strained from effort.

“Oh. Sorry…” Chungha sniffled as she pulled back.

Yeonjung wiped the tears away, and frowned slightly at Chungha’s dishevelled state. But despite that, Yeonjung still thought she looked pretty. “What am I doing?” she muttered under her breath. Looking up at the shorter girl, she whispered, “come on, let’s get you cleaned up.” She got up and held out her hand.

Chungha noded mutely and accepted Yeonjung’s assistance as she struggled to hold her tears in. Yeonjung led her down the hall silently.

Yeonjung handed Chungha a bottle of water before sitting next to her. They were sitting on the terrace, watching the PE classes outside play soccer. Faint shouts and screams emanating from the field filled the silence between them. Yeonjung glanced at the girl next to her, trying to debate whether to say something or not. She thought that Chungha would want some time to organize her thoughts. For once, Yeonjung was a little lost as to what to do.

“Thanks.”

Yeonjung nearly jumped. She didn’t expect Chungha’s voice to sound so raw and husky. “What for?” Yeonjung nearly scoffed, “I was just doing what any friend would do.”

Chungha cracked a small smile. Although Yeonjung sometimes appeared tactless, and little cold, she knew that Yeonjung was a big softie at heart. “But still. I want to say thank you,” she looked up at the taller girl’s confused eyes, “I’m sorry for being an emotional wreck.”

Yeonjung’s eyes widened slightly. “Don’t be. It must have been a shock to you,” she kicked the ground awkwardly.

“Yeah… I guess so.”

Chungha felt as if she had just been disassembled and put back together haphazardly. Everything felt overwhelming. The scene kept replaying repeatedly in her mind. Was she mistaken? No. She couldn’t deny the reality in front of her. The worst thing was, she was confused as to what made her feel worse: Sejeong kissing Hyoseol, or Hyoseol kissing Sejeong back. It was a blur to her, the whirlwind of her emotions blended together to create this sense of despair inside of her. Is it Sejeong? Or is it Hyoseol? It feels like both are breaking my heart. Chungha sighed. She felt her mind spinning.

Yeonjung could see the wheels turning in Chungha’s mind as the older girl scrunched up her eyebrows in concentration. She couldn’t help but pity her. She wished she could do something to help.

After a few more minutes, Chungha spoke, “could you not tell anyone about this? I don’t want them to find out…”

Yeonjung blinked, “yeah, of course. I’ll take this to my grave,” she gave her a thumb up to reassure her.

“I just feel really confused right now…”

//

“You still love Chungha right?”

Sejeong’s eyes quivered. “I…”  she paused for an excruciatingly long time.

It was all you needed to hear. Just the hesitation in her voice was enough to tell you the answer. They had broken up, but it wasn’t a surprise that Sejeong still had some feelings left for Chungha. However, the situation left you to reflect as well. Did you want to be with Sejeong so that you could forget Julie? Were you guilty of the same thing? Am I trying to erase the scar from my past?

“Sejeong-ssi… let’s just take some time to figure this out. What do you say?”

Sejeong’s eyes flickered up. There it is again. She’s using honorifics again. As if to distance herself from me... It hurts.

Sejeong nodded, trying not to let the hurt show in her eyes. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled.

You frowned, “the past is the past, but it doesn’t mean it doesn’t affect the present. I guess we both have that problem,” you dug your hands into your pockets, “and then we can figure out what’s going on between us.”

Sejeong felt an overwhelming amount of emotions: fear, anger, hurt, sadness and confusion. She didn’t understand why her heart was like this. One second she was grieving over her ex, the next she was head over heels with Hyoseol. She felt like she was betraying the both of them, but in reality, it was just Hyoseol. The only thing she was betraying with Chungha, was just the thought of her. Chungha didn’t love her anymore. Despite the hell Chungha put her through, a part of her still wanted her back. As much as Hyoseol made her heart flutter, Chungha felt like home, something comfortable. Torn between the past and present, Sejeong felt lost.

Past and present, who would she choose?

//

Chaeyeon was in the student council room going over one of the proposals for an inter-high sports day event. It was early in the morning, too early for anyone sane to come to school at this time. She was working against the clock to sort out the last-minute details, since SKYY won the bid to host the event. Most of the work went to Chaeyeon, since she was the vice president of external affairs, working out the logistics within the school was relatively simple, but working and coordinating with the student councils from the different schools was difficult.

“This is ridiculous,” she groaned. There was just too much work to be done. Her head was throbbing. She stood up and plopped on one of the couches in the student council room. Slowly, she started to drift off to sleep.

The faint sound of a motorcycle revving made Chaeyeon stir from slumber. Drifting in and out of sleep, she heard the beeping sound of the lock being unlocked. Soft footsteps entered the room, which made her become more alert. Who’s there? Who would come to school at this hour? She could feel her heart pounding, as she tried her best to remain still with her eyes shut. The footsteps got closer and stopped right in front of her.

“Chae?” the voice whispered softly.

“Heehyun?” Chaeyeon asked, confused. She got up slowly and stared at the cat-eyed girl, “what are you doing here?” She rubbed her eyes lazily.

“I heard that you were working on something for the council. You weren’t answering my texts or calls, so I got worried…” she trailed off, “knowing you, you won’t stop until things are done perfectly.” She smiled knowingly.

Chaeyeon giggled tiredly, “you’re right.”

“Which means that you probably haven’t eaten the whole time you’ve been at school.” Heehyun reached for the paper bag behind her. “I made you something to eat.”

Chaeyeon burst out in a toothy grin. Despite Heehyun’s bad girl image, she was extremely soft and caring when she wanted to be to others. That just happened to apply to her 24/7. Her heart warmed at the thought of Heehyun cooking for her. Sometimes she wondered how lucky she was to have met the older girl. “Sorry for not calling or texting you back, I was going to do that later.” She felt guilty for worrying the older girl.

“Don’t worry about it Chae, that’s not important. You should eat something. Here.” Heehyun offered the bag to Chaeyeon.

“Thanks babe, I can’t wait to eat!” She stood up, and quickly pecked Heehyun on the cheek, causing the older girl to blush slightly.

Chaeyeon really enjoyed Heehyun’s cooking. She always felt so happy whenever the older girl would cook for her. It always felt like going home for Chaeyeon. The warmth from the love and care that Heehyun would put into her food was reflected in its taste. With each bite of food, Chaeyeon found herself immersed in its taste. She hummed in excitement. “This is so good!”

Heehyun had propped her elbow on the table, and smiled watching Chaeyeon eat. “I’m glad you like it, you should eat some more.”

Chaeyeon laughed sheepishly, before focusing once again on the food in front of her.

Truthfully, Heehyun was worried about Chaeyeon. Once the girl focuses on something, it’s hard to get her to stop. Heehyun had often found Chaeyeon starving from having skipped meals in order to complete a task. The pressure and the expectations her parents had on Chaeyeon were immense. Heehyun pitied her. She wished she could do more to help, but really, all she could do was to try and make sure she was eating properly. Focusing again on Chaeyeon, she found herself smiling unconsciously. She wished their days could be this simple and easy.

“How is the proposal going?”

Chaeyeon sighed, “it’s going, but really slowly. It’s hard to get everyone’s opinion reflected equally. Everyone has different opinions, and it leads us to fight. Trust me, the last meeting I went to with Nayoung had me fuming. I was so mad, I got a fever right after it ended!”

Heehyun chuckled, “is it really that bad?”

“Unfortunately yes. Which makes my job so hard.” Chaeyeon groaned.

Heehyun laughed again, amused at the adorable pout her girlfriend had on her face. “You’re really cute when you’re sulky,” Heehyun narrowed her eyes as she leaned slowly closer to Chaeyeon, before suddenly diving for a peck on her lips, catching Chaeyeon by surprise, “it makes me want to kiss you,” she smirked.

Chaeyeon’s eyes widened in surprise before blushing at the sudden kiss. “S—stop… you’re embarrassing me…” she looked down as she turned even more red.

“Cute… But there’s no one here, “ Heehyun smiled and added, “if you make that face, it makes me want to kiss you more,” she leaned in, teasing Chaeyeon.

Chaeyeon giggled at the older girl’s attempts at flirting. “Unnie…” she whined, “you’re always like this when you tease me.”

Heehyun sighed, and pretended to wipe a fake tear, “I can’t help it, you’re just too cute to me.”

Chaeyeon got up, circled the table to where Heehyun was, dragged her to the couch. Heehyun was amused, and followed her girlfriend. Chaeyeon straddled her hips and wrapped her arms around Heehyun’s neck.

“I love you.” Chaeyeon whispered while looking into Heehyun’s dark eyes.

“I love you more,” Heehyun whispered back, her voice huskier than usual, and circled her arms around Chaeyon’s waist.

Chaeyeon took the opportunity to kiss Heehyun, her lips desperate to meet her’s. She had been feeling stressed and overwhelmed with work, but whenever she was with Heehyun, everything would fade away. All the stress, exhaustion—everything. Instead of worrying about the future, she found herself living in the present: being in love with the girl front of her.

Chaeyeon pulled Heehyun towards her, her fingers tangled in Heehyun’s black hair, as she let out a soft moan. Heehyun wasted no time putting her hands to use, she rubbed Chaeyeon’s back, then her hands travelled up and down her back, leaving light marks against the pale girl’s skin. Chaeyeon’s breath hitched at the sudden contact from Heehyun’s hands, making her arch her back slightly, sighing in euphoria.

Although the room was dark, she could feel the smirk on Heehyun’s lips as she went in for another kiss. The older girl was pleased at the effect she had on Chaeyeon. With every touch she laid on Chayeon’s porcelain skin, her moans became visibly increasingly louder. Heehyun brought her lips to Chaeyeon’s jaw and trailed kisses slowly down her neck, careful to not make a permanent mark on her skin. This elicited a soft sigh of pleasure from Chaeyeon, as she closed her eyes. After, Heehyun brought her eyes level with Chaeyeon’s and gazed deeply into her brown orbs. She was panting slightly, her fingers trailed circles on Chaeyeon’s back.

“What is it?”

Heehyun smiled. “I’m just trying to take everything in. I want to stay like this forever. With you.” She leaned in to kiss her, “I want to etch these moments in my memory, so I can remember them forever,” she mumbled before kissing Chaeyeon’s soft lips.

Suddenly Chaeyeon’s phone rang. Chaeyeon groaned, “who could be calling now?” She was annoyed that the caller cut their moment short. She got off Heehyun’s lap gingerly, and made her way to the table. She looked at the screen and gasped in surprise, it was her father. Now her mood soured. She answered the phone angrily, “what do you want?” she spat out, causing Heehyun to look at her worriedly.  

Heehyun could barely make out the conversation, but she recognized the voice on the other line as Chaeyeon’s father’s, causing her to narrow her eyes. Whatever the conversation was, it was something that Chaeyeon didn’t seem to want to have any part in.

“I don’t want to. Do you think I’m some kind of puppet you can order around whenever you want?” Chaeyeon growled.

Heehyun stood up quietly and slid her arms around Chaeyeon’s waist, trying to calm her down and reassure her. Chaeyeon was shaking.

After a few moments, Chaeyeon muttered an annoyed, “yes,” before ending the call.

“Are you okay?” Heehyun whispered, her chin resting on Chaeyeon’s shoulder.

“No. My father wants me to attend another public event to help with his re-election. He’s so full of . Trying to use me as a prop and all, he has no shame,” she growled.

Heehyun pulled Chaeyeon closer. “I’m sorry…”

Chaeyeon turned to face Heehyun, “don’t be. It’s not your fault.”

Heehyun kissed her forehead, and then caressed her face gently while gazing into her eyes, “I wish I could make everything better for you.”

Chaeyeon closed her eyes and hugged Heehyun tighter. “You make everything better.”

Chaeyeon woke up to the sound of her alarm blaring across the room. She realized that she must’ve fallen asleep while talking to Heehyun. She paused and looked around, speaking of her girlfriend, where did she go? She reached up to brush her hair when she felt a post-it stuck on her head. It was a note:

Sorry, I didn’t want to wake you up while you were sleeping. You looked really exhausted. I bought you breakfast, and the strawberry milk is in the fridge. Don’t overwork yourself, get some rest when you can. – KH

Chaeyeon couldn’t help but smile at her girlfriend’s sincerity. Although she was a little disappointed that they couldn’t eat breakfast together, the note warmed her heart. It was a shame that they often left each other’s places like a ghost in the night. It would be nice if they could be open with their relationship.

Heehyun contemplated skipping third period, and decided it was a good idea to avoid Linear Algebra II. She hated math with a passion, even though she was good at it. The lock clicked open with a beep and she threw herself onto the couch with a grunt. Closing her eyes, she decided that she wanted to sleep off the rest of the day, waking up early to check on Chaeyeon drained her batteries. However, a sound piqued her interest, it sounded like… sobbing?

Curious, Heehyun stood up and followed the sound to Chungha’s room. Knocking on the door she asked if Chungha was okay. Silence.

“Alright, I’m coming in,” Heehyun swung the door open, and found Chungha at the corner of her room wiping her tears. Her eyes were bloodshot and the bags under her eyes were darker than usual. “Hey… what happened?” Heehyun approached her carefully and handed her a tissue.

Chungha glanced up, “it’s complicated…”

Heehyun sat down next to Chungha, and wrapped her arm over her shoulder. “Whatever it is… I’m here for you, you know that right?”

Chungha nodded, thankful for her friend’s presence.

“If I gotta fight someone, you let me know alright? Though if I get another detention, I might get suspended again— not that I really care, but Chaeyeon’s going to be pissed…”

Chungha cracked a small smile, “thanks Heehyun. I appreciate it.” She laid her head on Heehyun’s shoulder and thought out loud: “I can’t tell if I’m more heartbroken that Sejeong has a crush on my crush, or the fact that my crush likes my ex back… Honestly,” she scoffed, “what kind of twisted situation is this?”

Heehyun whipped her head, open in surprise.

“Why am I even crying over this… this is illogical and stupid. So stupid. This shouldn’t hurt as much as it does… So why does my heart ache so much?” Tears flowed down her eyes as she sniffled.

Heehyun hugged her tighter, “love makes you irrational… there is no logic when it comes down to it. If it hurts, then it hurts. If it hurts, then I guess you know that what you feel is real.”

//

Mina sniffed the air. “Seems like the smell of food is coming from the old home economics room? Who could be in there?” She poked her head through the door to see pots and pans scattered across the room, and food already set on the table. However, there was no sign of anyone inside, which gave Mina goosebumps. G—ghost? Is there a ghost? Who… who could be cooking in here? She bravely took a step inside the classroom and observed her surroundings, when suddenly a head popped out of nowhere, scaring Mina. She fell backwards, almost knocking off one of the pots on the table. Clutching her chest, she nearly had a heart attack. “Oh my god!” she shrieked.

It was Sohye.

“If you’re going to come out of nowhere, making some noise or something! You scared the hell out of me!”

“Sorry…” Sohye whispered sheepishly, “I didn’t think anyone would come in here…”

Mina exhaled, a sigh of relief. “Honestly, I thought there was a ghost in here before you popped up. You seriously scared me.” She peered over Sohye’s shoulder. “What are you cooking?”

Sohye whipped around. “Oh? This? I made some galbi-jim.” She gestured towards the pot. “Would you like some?”

Mina’s stomach growled. She looked up at Sohye, her eyes widened in surprise, before blushing in embarrassment as she clutched her stomach.

“You must not have eaten lunch yet…” Sohye muttered while uncovering the lid.

Mina took this opportunity to circle around Sohye and sat on a chair so that she was facing her. Sohye looked different, more confident than her usual quiet and shy self. Although they’ve known each other for quite some time, she rarely had the chance to really talk to the other girl. They’ve been in the same classes for years but Mina hardly interacted with her over the course of knowing one another, except for when they had school projects. It made her feel a little guilty.

Sohye never imagined running into Mina here. This part of the school was rarely occupied by students since the school expanded. It was her little haven for when things were stressful. She would cook and eat here, away from everyone else. But to have Kang Mina here? She wondered if life was pulling a prank on her, because there was no way her luck was that great. Her crush was standing right in front of her. In the flesh. This isn’t a dream right?

“It smells really good.” Mina smiled.

“It’ll taste even better,” Sohye replied confidently.

Sohye took out the utensils and set the bowls on the table. She scooped up some of the galbi-jim onto each of their bowls and some rice onto another bowl. She motioned for Mina to eat.

“Sorry, there’s only kimchi in the fridge, I forgot to prepare more side dishes yesterday.” Sohye frowned.

“No, no, that’s okay! You’ve done so much already, and on top of it you’re letting me eat with you. I should be the one who’s sorry instead.” Mina picked up her chopsticks, “jal meokgesseumnida!” She took a bite of the beef short ribs, which instantly melted in , the meat was so tender and packed with flavor. She closed her eyes to savour the flavour better.

“How is it…?” Sohye asked tentatively.

“This. Is. Amazing. You could seriously just open a restaurant right here and now!” Mina nodded furiously. “You would sell out every day! This is the best galbi-jim I’ve ever had!” Mina spoke excitedly while waving a piece of galbi around.

The wave of compliments made Sohye blush. “Ah… I don’t think I’m that good, it’s more like a hobby for me. Opening a restaurant would be a serious commitment.”

“If you ever do, I’ll definitely be a regular customer.” Mina’s eyes formed crescents as she grinned. “You’re so lucky you cook so well. I’m horrible at cooking even though I love to eat.” She pouted.

“W—well, if you’re ever hungry I don’t mind cooking you lunch or something like…” Sohye chuckled lightly out of embarrassment.

“Really? You’d do that?” Mina clasped her fingers together and looked at the older girl with wide, hopeful puppy eyes.

Sohye shifted in her seat, “yeah of course… besides I always end up making too much food anyways…”

Mina grabbed her hands, “thank you!” she squealed. “You have no idea what it’s like living on bread, kimbap and ramyun all the time!” Mina looked at her teary eyed, “my roommates never cook. Kim Nayoung is always off god knows where, and Sejeong is usually too busy to make food.” She sniffled. “I always end up eating delivery or food from the convenience store…”

Sohye sympathized with her. Maybe this was a little crazy, her heart was pounding, what was she doing? moved without her realizing it. “Hey… would you like… want to have dinner with me this weekend?” Sohye bit her lip, anxiously waiting for Mina’s answer.

Mina blinked a few times, before breaking out into a grin, “I’d love to!”

//

Hyeyeon grumbled under her breath, “where could she be? She’s not answering any of my texts!” Hyeyeon and Mina were supposed to meet in the old wing of the school to work on homework from the cram school, but the girl was nowhere to be found.

“I swear to god, if she forgot about me, I’m going to kill her when I see her.” She wandered around the 4^rd floor when she saw Mina exiting a room with another girl whose name she didn’t immediately recall. Mina bid the other girl farewell before walking down the hall. The other girl watched her for a bit before retreating into the room. Hyeyeon was confused, just who was that girl, and why did Mina ditch her just to hang out with her? Shaking away those thoughts, she ran after Mina.

“YA KANG MINA!” She screamed.

The sudden noise made Mina flinch as she instinctively turned her head towards the sound of her name being called. “Oh Hyeyeon, what are you doing here?”

“Are you serious?” she arched her eyebrow, “did you forget that we were supposed to go over our homework for cram school?”

Mina gasped, “ah… I knew I was forgetting something. Oops, sorry about that.” She looked at her best friend guiltily.

Hyeyeon just sighed and rolled her eyes. “What would you do without me? You’re already falling behind and it’s only been a week and a half since we’ve signed up.”

“I know…” she whined, “how are you even keeping up? They go so fast you have barely any time to breathe…”

Hyeyeon rubbed her temples, “c’mon let’s go and study, you really need to boost your English marks this time. Let’s not waste any more time.”

Hyeyeon glanced at Mina a few times, who was in the middle of reading a paragraph in the workbook. That girl… she seems so familiar. What was Mina doing in that old home economics room? She took another look at Mina. She seems to be in a good mood today. Is she hiding something from me? I want to ask her…

Mina turned towards Hyeyeon. “Is there something wrong?” She tilted her head. “Why do you keep staring at me?”

Hyeyeon was taken aback, she scoffed. “Pft, me? Stare at you? In your dreams, loser.”

Mina stuck out her tongue, “meannnnn.” She gave Hyeyeon a wink and turned back to her book.

Somehow that gesture made her heart skip a beat.

//

Nayoung had been avoiding Kyulkyung for the past week. She felt a little unsettled by what had been seeing lately. It shook her to the core. She never expected to feel this way, she was losing her composure. It scared her mostly. She felt like she was falling apart.

I guess I’ve been taking her attention for granted. What they had before was perfect. Before Hyoseol. She wasn’t aware of the growing knot in her heart then, nor was she deprived of the love and affection typically shown to her by the Chinese heartthrob. Get a grip already… you’re acting like a lovesick puppy right now. She can like whoever she wants… we’re not even dating. Nayoung mentally kicked herself. She plopped herself on one of the couches in the student council room. She closed her eyes and rested her arm on her forehead. She was being irrational. Kyulkyung had the right to like and be with whoever she wanted. Nayoung knew she shouldn’t be upset and jealous. But it kept nagging at her. In her mind’s eye, the scenes of their interactions kept occupying her mind. She couldn’t shake the images away.

She felt a shadow looming over her. “There you are.”

Nayoung opened one of her eyes slowly, then the other, and tilted her head back. It was Kyulkyung. Her heart started beating quicker.

“Kyulkyung.”

“Nayoung.” She looked upset.

“Is there something you need?” Nayoung tried to keep the bitterness out of her voice.

“I want to talk to you. Did I do something wrong?” She looked like a puppy who’d been kicked.

It made Nayoung’s heart waver. Her anger subsided almost immediately just by looking at her. But then the jealousy kicked in. She had so many questions in her mind, but she knew she didn’t have the right to ask them. Someone as selfish as her didn’t deserve her.

“No? Why do you say that?” Nayoung spoke slowly.

“Then why do you keep avoiding me?”

Nayoung coughed and looked at Kyulkyung dead in the eye. “I’m not avoiding you.”

“Yes, you are!” She threw her hands up in exasperation. “You saw me in the hallways yesterday and you literally did a 180 and practically ran away from me!”

“Oh. That… I forgot to submit an assignment….”

Kyulkyung raised her eyebrow. “How about yesterday during lunch? You walked into the cafeteria and bolted out the moment you saw me!”

“I forgot that I had a meeting.” Nayoung deadpanned.

“Ugh! You’re being impossible today, Nayoung. You’ve been avoiding me this whole time! Why don’t you just admit it?!”

“But I’m not.” Nayoung tried her best to keep her voice steady.

“Fine.” Kyulkyung turned away. “If that’s what you say.” And stalked out the door.

Nayoung let out a sigh. What have I done? She held her head in her hands and mentally berated herself. Great, now she’s mad at me. She ran her fingers through her hair.

“Trouble in paradise?” A husky voice teased.

Nayoung whipped her head up to meet the newcomer. She would’ve recognized that voice anywhere.

“Kim Nayoung.”

“Ouh. You don’t look so good.” She smirked. “What’s wrong prez? You and your girlfriend had a fight?” She sat down next to Nayoung and stared at her with an amused look.

“Shut up.” She rolled her eyes. “She’s not my girlfriend.” She moved to get up.

Kim Nayoung’s hand shot out and grabbed the other Nayoung by the wrist. “Then why do you look like you guys just broke up?”

Kim Nayoung was an old friend whom she’d met during their childhood at one of the many cram schools she’d attended. She was annoyingly arrogant at times, but she knew her better than most. Even though they stopped seeing each other during the later years of elementary school, they both ended up somehow attending SKYY. She hadn’t changed one bit, her face still looked the same as when they were younger. Imagine their surprise when they met one another at the entrance ceremony. Kim Nayoung was the opposite of herself. While she got to where she was by sheer hardwork and determination, Kim Nayoung was blessed with both beauty and brains.

Kim Nayoung often skipped out on classes, but teachers often let her be since she was one of the best students in SKYY—her ranking was even higher than hers. She would often disappear from campus (god knows where she would go), or she’d just lounge around on one of the many couches or benches spread around the school. As president, it hurt her to see a student with such potential just waste away like that. But it was Kim Nayoung. Her annoying childhood friend.

“We’re not dating.” She repeated.

“Sure, sure whatever you say.” She leaned back against the couch.

“Where have you been? You skipped half a day of school.”

“Hm… places.” She spoke thoughtfully. “Places you would never go.”

Nayoung narrowed her eyes. “You’re a mess.” She scoffed and got up.

“Right you are on that one.” She smirked. “But I’m a beautiful mess.”

Nayoung rolled her eyes. “Is there something you want? You normally don’t visit without a reason.” She started organizing the folders on her desk, and added: “don’t say it’s because you missed me.”

She pouted. “Darn. I was just going to say that I missed my favorite other half.” She puffed up her cheeks and made an attempt to hug the younger girl.

Nayoung swiftly dodged her attempt and went back to organizing.

“Ah seriously… why are you always like this?” Kim Nayoung sulked. “Anyways, I was just going to ask about the interhigh event. How’s that going for you?”

Nayoung raised an eyebrow. “Why are you interested in that?”

She hummed. “Hm… No reason. Just curious is all.”

“You never cared for school events, let alone what goes on with the student body. Why now?”

Nayoung inquired.

“I just thought it was an interesting concept is all.” She smiled. “You’re really gonna let Wagguk come on home turf?”

“Technically… yes. It’s a good warm up before the real competition starts.”

“Interesting. I guess I should practice seriously then.” She grinned. She hopped off the couch and made her way out the door. “See you later chingu-ya!” She waved behind her while walking away.

Kyulkyung felt angry. Why was Nayoung acting like this? She felt hurt at her apathy towards her. She walked mindlessly around the school, before bumping into Hyoseol accidentally.

“Are you okay?” You asked.

“No. I’m not…”

//

“… I don’t even know what I did wrong. Which makes it so annoying.” Jieqiong looked at you eyes full of hurt.

“I’m sorry to hear that… Maybe it’s me. She only started acting like that after I came right?”

“What? No way! Why would you be the reason? You haven’t even done anything wrong!”

“Maybe she was upset at how close we were? Maybe she felt like she was being replaced by me?”

“That’s ridiculous. I’m still her friend! Besides… we haven’t seen each other in so long…”

You smiled. “Well… it’s not so simple, maybe it’s not like that from her point of view.”

Jieqiong sighed. “Honestly, I don’t even know what she’s thinking sometimes. She’s so stubborn sometimes. When she doesn’t want to talk, she really won’t talk. It makes it so hard to know how she feels, when she doesn’t even tell me.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault. Speaking of which, how has soccer practice been going? We’re hosting an interhigh sports day competition this year. They must be working you like dogs.” Jieqiong looked at you worriedly.

“Ah… yeah, your president hasn’t been at practice for a while. I guess it’s cause of that interhigh thing. It’s been okay, those that were on the team last year are really working hard to get us in shape for the competition. It’s not too hard though, they’re pretty fun to train with.”

“That’s great.” Jieqiong smiled, crinkling her nose. “Are you okay though? You seem like you’re not having a good day either.”

You sighed. “No I am not.” And you proceeded to tell her about today’s events.

//

Nayoung stood in front of the window impassively. Watching the scene below her unfold. Kyulkyung leaning on Hyoseol’s shoulders as she spoke. The looked deep into their conversation.

Somehow, it made Nayoung’s heart hurt even more than before.

//

Sejeong felt strange sitting next to Hyoseol. The air felt tenser than before. Maybe it was just her. She glanced at the other girl. She looked focused on the chemistry problem that they were supposed to solve. She paid no mind to Sejeong at all. Am I overthinking this? She wasn’t sure how to face Hyoseol now. Her feelings were making everything so complicated.

Sighing, she gave up on solving the problems and just decided to take a nap. To many thoughts were running around in her mind. There was an unsettling feeling in her heart.

She turned around to where Chungha usually sat, but noticed that the older girl wasn’t there.

That’s weird. She’s not the type to skip class. I hope she’s okay. Sejeong fidgeted worriedly.

Classes ended for the day, and she could feel the tension finally ease up. Are we not going to talk about this? She looked at the Chinese girl anxiously. Hyoseol was packing up her things and got up quickly making her way to the door, before waving goodbye and turning away.

Am I the only one acting weird? She sighed.

She followed the trail of students leaving the school. She noticed Hyoseol walking with Kyulkyung towards the soccer field. They were standing awfully close together. Somehow that made her heart hurt too. She watched them walk away into the distance, before setting off for the running track. She hoped that practice would make her forget about her worries in the meantime.

Beads of sweat dripped down her forehead as she panted from exhaustion. Faster. I need to be faster. She tended to focus on hurdles as her main event, but the coach had asked her to take on the 100m sprint this year. It had been a while since she’s done sprints, but she could feel herself getting comfortable with the pace. Her muscles were still screaming for help though. She walked to the water fountains to take loosen up and take a break. She watched the girls’ soccer team practicing, faint screams were heard, she could barely make out the orders that were being barked.

Her eyes searched for Hyoseol, before finding her next to Minkyung, seemingly laughing at something the younger girl was saying. She felt her heart contracting again, it was squeezing uncomfortably. Minkyung had her arm around Hyoseol’s shoulder as they walked across the field together, with Jung Eunwoo trailing behind. They stopped in front of Kyulkyung and Kyungwon, the latter who was eating some hotteok she bought near the school, and the former who simply handed them water bottles.

Hyoseol was drenched in sweat, along with the other girls. It seemed that they had just finished a scrimmage. She couldn’t stop watching Hyoseol. Even with all that sweat, she still looked attractive to her. Once her thoughts started entering an R-rated area she slapped herself awake.

Ah what’s wrong with me? Seriously. She walked back to the field. Screams of “Sejeong noona or unnie” rang across the field, making her blush. Her “fanclub” was here today watching over her practice. Although she appreciated their support, it was slightly embarrassing to hear those screams at practice. It was an open practice today, so she couldn’t really do anything about it. She smiled brightly and waved to them in the stands, which was quite full surprisingly. More screams erupted from the crowd as they got more excited.

//

“Ah seriously Kang Kyungwon…” Minkyung trailed off.

“What now? I didn’t even do anything!” Kyungwon retorted, still munching on her hotteok. “Aish, you keep blaming me for things when I have nothing to do with them! How is it my fault that water spilt on your face? It’s your fault for not closing the cap properly.”

“It’s still your fault!”

Kyungwon rolled her eyes while muttering under her breath. “Fine, fine, it’s my fault… always my fault… didn’t even have anything to do with your water bottle… was I the one who screwed open the lid instead of just pulling the sports cap?”

Minkyung smiled endearingly at Kyungwon’s ramblings. She loved teasing the younger girl.

“Stop bothering Kyungwon unnie, you’re so mean Minkyung unnie.” Kyulkyung pouted, feigning anger.

Minkyung let out a chuckle. “Was I too mean Kyungwonnie?” She reached out to pat her head jokingly.

Kyungwon tried to bite her finger. Scowling when she missed.

“Kang Kyungwon cute.” She grinned, her eyes disappearing into crescent shaped moons.

Kyungwon groaned. She hated how her best friend loved to . Minkyung took a bite out of Kyungwon’s hotteok which lead to her whining. “I walked all the way to the stall outside of school to get that!”

“Oops. It’s mine now!” Minkyung giggled.

Resigned to being bullied, yet again, Kyungwon quickly ate the rest of the hotteok while Minkyung laughed. “Don’t you have archery practice today?”

Kyungwon glanced up. “I quit. Didn’t you know?”

Minkyung blinked. “You did? When?”

“Last week.” Kyungwon shrugged. “Just wasn’t feeling it anymore.”

“What are your parents going to think? Your scholarship…” Minkyung trailed off.

“Can’t be helped.” Kyungwon waved her off.

Minkyung frowned. “Are you sure about this?”

“I handed in my resignation letter already. Not that captain was too happy to hear that, with the interhigh happening and all. But it’s a choice I had to make.” Kyungwon shrugged looking slightly in pain as she did so.

Minkyung looked at her worriedly.

“Don’t make that face Kim Minky. I’m okay.” Kyungwon smiled.

But Minkyung knew there was something wrong. She just couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

//

You were getting to know your teammates over the course of the week and you never realized that some of them were in your classes. Besides Nayoung, Somi and Dani whom you had already met before, you had really gotten along with Minkyung. The younger girl had a great sense of humor, not to admit she had polished skills on the pitch. She would keep up the morale on the field with her jokes and encourage everyone else. As expected of the vice-captain. Whereas Nayoung was more about structure and rules, Minkyung was the opposite. It made practice less stressful for everyone, she focused more on the chemistry between members, rather than set plays.

She introduced you to Jung Eunwoo, a shorter girl who played on the wing. She had a habit of screaming out English words and would get all excited by herself. You found It amusing, but her vitamin-ness (was that even a word?) rubbed off on you. She would often be seen with Siyeon hyping each other up.

The next person she introduced you to was Kang Kyungwon, a “former” archer and Minkyung’s best friend. The girl was almost as tall as you were, with chocolate hair and a contagious laugh, she was someone you found yourself talking to whenever she watched you guys practice. She was constantly eating, but somehow still managed to keep a great figure. “It’s all in the genes.” She replied with a wink.

Kang Yebin was another one of Minkyung’s underclass mates, who was often spotted with the troublemaker duo: Eunwoo and Siyeon. Unlike the other two she was more…. fiery than the others. Her temper on the field was no joke. She was a nice girl though off field, you supposed it was just her competitive nature coming out.

Somi and Dani were busy coming up with new plays based on the varying formations they had assigned. Dani blew the last whistle and dismissed the team for the day after thanking them for their hard work. She spoke to Minkyung briefly about any improvements to be made for next practice, with the older girl promising to take note, then waved the two goodbye as she left school with Kyungwon.

“Som, let’s get some ice cream?” Dani asked.

“Okay.”

Dani noticed that Somi hadn’t looked so happy lately. She seemed more down than usual, her energy reaching an all-time low for the human vitamin. She felt bad, her usual attempts of trying to cheer her up weren’t really working. She decided to confront her.

They walked along the Han River, with the seagulls squawking in the distance, and sound of the river flowing along the bank. It was a beautiful day, the sun was in the middle of setting, there was a light breeze, and air felt exceptionally crisp.

“Somi are you okay?” She stopped walking. “You looked really down for the past week.”

Somi bit her lip. Should I tell her? What if she thinks I’m crazy? What if she doesn’t want to be my friend anymore?

Dani saw the wheels turning in Somi’s head. Somehow that made her even more nervous. She was walking along the Han River with someone she might(?) have feelings for? There was something there. Sometimes, even without doing anything she could feel some sparks between them. From a single look, a simple touch, a smile, a laugh, Dani could find herself falling into Somi’s charm. The younger girl always made her feel warm inside, but also confused. She wasn’t sure she should fall in love with her best friend again.

For the longest time, she had always had a crush on Chaeyeon. Her sunbae had always taken care of her ever since they were in elementary, looking after her like a sister, and sometimes, like a mother. She knew the difficult situation she was often put in. After all, her father was an affluent political figure who openly looked down upon those who were beneath him, at the cost of her daughter’s happiness. He disproved of their friendship for as long as Dani could remember. Chaeyeon fought tooth and nail for them to remain friends and be allowed to attend the same school. For that, Dani was forever grateful to her. Which was why she didn’t dare confess her feelings to Chaeyeon. It would make things more complicated and she would ruin their long friendship.

When Chaeyeon started dating Heehyun, Dani couldn’t contain her surprise, nor her disappointment. That girl was just trouble. She was like Kim Nayoung in the sense that they both were born with exceptional talent and beauty. They both would skip school, except that Kim Nayoung knew where to draw the line.

Ki Heehyun knew no limits. It came as no surprise though, it was rumored (most believe that they’re true) that she was the daughter of a powerful gangster— no gangster wasn’t the right word. More like an underworld organization. Which was how she managed to never get in trouble no matter what she did. She was adopted by a politician’s family—who had no children, and who most people thought was corrupt, fitting the rumors that were often whispered behind Ki Heehyun’s back. Not that the girl really cared. She often spent her days outside of school, more than in school.

If Chaeyeon’s father knew… She shuddered. She didn’t want to think about that. All hell would break loose. Could you imagine? A rising star in politics, his daughter dating the rumored daughter of a criminal organization? The media would have a field day! Not that Chaeyeon cared though, she was still dating that girl after all this time.

Deep down, Dani wondered if Chaeyeon was just dating her to get back at her father. She wouldn’t really know though, she tended to keep most of their relationship private. Which Dani preferred, if she had to sit through listening to every detail of their relationship, she probably would’ve gone crazy. Her heart still ached a little at the thought though. She was mostly over her crush, but deep down, she would always have a soft spot for Chaeyeon.

A soft spot that Somi noticed immediately. It made her a little jealous at times, the attention Dani would give the older girl. She was positive that Dani had feelings for her sunbae. The way she would look at her like a lovesick puppy… created a crack in her heart. She never looked at her like that. She wished she did.

“I’m not even sure where to start.” Somi mumbled.

Dani motioned her to sit at a bench. “Start with anything. It pains me to see you like this…”

Somi gulped. “Well… I have a friend. Who likes a friend. But she’s not sure how to approach her really… They’ve been friends for a while…” Somi stopped. “She doesn’t know whether to confess or not, because she fears losing their friendship.”

“She must love that person a lot.” Dani smiled sadly. “She should still take a chance, better to have tried than not at all. Wouldn’t you say?”

Somi nodded mutely. “But is it worth the risk?”

“I think love is always worth the risk. If you really love that person, you shouldn’t lose them due to hesitation.” Dani looked up thoughtfully. “If you lose your chance like that, you’ll regret it forever.”

//

Sohye had never been the type to participate in sports, but the poster hanging on the wall had her undivided attention. The swim team. She wasn’t sure if she was crazy or stupid, signing up for the swim team. After all it was led by the infamous Ki Heehyun. Ruthless in and out of the pool, she demanded the best from her teammates. It was so bad that she made 7 people drop out on the first day. She shuddered at the thought. It couldn’t be that bad right?

Ok. Turns out, things can definitely be that bad. She stood in line with the rest of the new recruits and was practically shaking from fear. Ki Heehyun had an intimidating aura, she was one of the aces of the swim team—famous for her freestyle , but she was well rounded in the other styles. She was wild and unpredictable, but she was responsible as the captain of the swim team (surprisingly).

Kim Nayoung was next to her, another all-rounder on the team, but her specialty was the butterfly. She was Ki Heehyun’s “second in command.” Both were famous for skipping school, but still ranking high in terms of grades. It was surprising that they managed to gather together on the swim team. Unlike Kim Nayoung who was more relaxed, Ki Heehyun was surprisingly strict, insisting on perfection.

Somehow, she passed the tryouts.

“Surprisingly you’re not too bad at the stroke. You’ve got potential. If we train you a little more, we just might make something out of you, wouldn’t you agree Naong?”

Nayoung smirked. “She’s rough around the edges, nothing a little training won’t fix.” She turned around and yelled, “Kim Doyeon!” She was answered with a yell, and suddenly a tall slender girl appeared next to Sohye. “Help her with the stroke. She’s your responsibility.” Doyeon looked at her wide eyed. “You’ve been nagging at me to get someone to mentor, right? Well here’s your mentee.” Nayoung motioned towards Sohye.

Doyeon broke out in a grin, she looked a little too excited which made Sohye nervous. She didn’t think she would’ve made it this far.

“Go break a leg you two.”

After swimming for what felt like hours, Doyeon motioned for them to wrap out. Just as Sohye reached the side of the pool, she noticed a figure bent over Doyeon— it was Choi Yoojung. The smaller girl handed Doyeon a towel, then stepped back as Doyeon jumped out of the pool. Sohye stood there mesmerized by Doyeon’s beauty. She could seriously pass as a swim suit model.

Doyeon beckoned Sohye over and invited her to eat with them. Sohye gratefully accepted. And that became their routine, swim practice and eating. She found herself belonging in a group.

Sohye texted Yeonjung immediately about her acceptance into the swim team. The younger girl congratulated her sincerely and bought her a cake as a surprise. They spent the day in Sohye’s apartment, and watched movies until they both passed out.

Sohye felt as peace as she finally found things looking up for her. The direction of one's life could be changed with just one simple decision.

Sorry for disappearing for the last 3 months. I tried really hard this semester to boost my GPA (which I did, I got 4 As in my classes), which was why I wasn't really able to write anything. As an apology i wrote a longer chapter and tried to include everyone as best as I could without it getting too long. Thanks for staying with me and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Let me know who your favorite couple is so far and who you think should be together! Should Sejeong choose Hyoseol or Chungha? Decision decisions...

ALSO. While I was dead in a ditch for the past few months, Gugudan, Pristin, DIA's albums are bops. Truly amazing. Also cried listening to Chungha's "Week," girl knows how to sing and make me cry. I've been watching Dodaeng's diary and they're so cute!! I keep up with Unnies' Slam Dunk when I can and I really love the show. Somi's making a comeback with the Unnies on May 12, so support our girl okay?? Sohye's been doing dramas and she has a job as an MC, I'm so proud of my little penguin. :') Yeonjung is finally getting the rest she deserves after promoting endlessly. I miss IOI, but I'm glad our girls are doing well even after IOI. <3